Peoria, IllinoisJanuary 1958

On January 12, 1958, two women returning home from church near Sterling Avenue and Albany Avenue in Peoria, Illinois, spotted an unusual object hovering above electric light poles around 1700 hours (5 p.m.). The object was elliptical in shape, roughly 14 feet by 28 feet, with dull aluminum coloring. What made it distinctive was a set of at least five triangular fins extending from its body, which observers said resembled the rear end of a 1958 Chrysler automobile. Each fin had a circular ball at its tip. The entire object rotated as it ascended from its initial position. It hung motionless for approximately 10 minutes, then rose to an undetermined height and moved off in a westerly direction without performing any maneuvers. The object made no sound.

The Air Force found the case puzzling. An official inquiry was launched by the 791st Aircraft Control and Warning Squadron at Hanna City, which noted the witnesses seemed sincere. However, a peculiar problem emerged during the investigation: despite being observed in broad daylight over a city street intersection for a substantial length of time, no one else reported seeing the object. The Air Force contacted Peoria's Sheriff's Office seeking corroboration from local records and police reports. The Sheriff's Office confirmed they had received a report from the Hanna City Radar Base and had forwarded it to Ent Air Force Base in Colorado Springs, but they found no corroborating sightings in their own files. The Air Force noted that an object this large, this visible, and this stationary would logically have been spotted by many other people and reported to local authorities, yet it apparently was not.

The case file does not state a final conclusion. The cover sheet indicates the case was marked as "not concluded" and listed as having insufficient data. Local authorities declined or were unable to provide the cooperation the Air Force needed to complete its investigation. The full case file, comprising 10 pages, is reproduced below as held by the National Archives.